


11 Summers of Isaac Lahey

by Nutella_enthusiast



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Small Town, Canon Gay Character, Canonical Character Death, Child Abuse, F/M, Homophobia, M/M, Mr. Lahey is a great big bag of dicks, all character death is canon, spousal abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-07-28
Updated: 2013-12-22
Packaged: 2017-12-21 14:40:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/901461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nutella_enthusiast/pseuds/Nutella_enthusiast
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Summary: No one really knew why the town of Beacon Hills, California, was called that. There were no hills anywhere within the city limits, just flat, sprawling farmlands, cut only by the town’s single highway that ran all the way to Fresno, the biggest city within a four hour drive - and many of the citizens had never even been that far away.</p><p>The summer before Isaac Lahey turned 9 was the summer that set him on the path to being one of those few who got out of that farming town for good. This is the story of how he did it.</p><p>A small town AU set over the course of the 11 years it took Isaac to realize he was in love - while Danny, of course, knew from the very beginning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The First Summer - Eight Years Old

**Author's Note:**

> This story will update once a week, every Saturday night, and will be 11 chapters and an epilogue

No one really knew why the town of Beacon Hills, California, was called that. There were no hills anywhere within the city limits, just flat, sprawling farmlands, cut only by the town’s single highway that ran all the way to Fresno, the biggest city within a four hour drive - and many of the citizens had never even been that far away. Considering the population was only about 5,000, the town was fairly large, stretching on for many miles into the surrounding land. There was a small suburban area around city hall, with a post office, grocery store, gas station, police office and a school, along with a few larger houses for the more affluent citizens and city officials, but most of the town was made up of the farms that covered the ground as far as the eye could see - and since the ground was so flat, and the only trees were Mr. Greenburg’s apple orchard, that was pretty damn far. You could see all the way to the chain link fence separating them from Nevada if you looked in the right direction on a clear day, but the desert looked the same no matter what side of the fence you were on.

 

Things rarely changed in Beacon Hills. People didn’t really move there, and only about 65% of the students who started school there graduate. Of that 65%, or about 45 students, only around 15 go to college. Of the 15 who go to college, at least half are on sports scholarships, and only about 5 go to college out of state. And of those 5, there’s usually only 1 or 2 who leave Beacon Hills and never look back.

 

The summer before Isaac Lahey turned 9 was the summer that set him on the path to being one of those few who got out of that farming town for good. This is the story of how he did it.

 

His story starts on a sunny afternoon in late August, 11 days before his first day of the third grade (and 28 days before his birthday, but he would deny that he was counting if you asked him. He was almost 9, and 9-year-olds didn’t do such juvenile things as count the days until their birthdays.

 

He was laying on his bed in his attic bedroom, playing an old Spiro the Dragon game on his Gameboy when his father’s voice interrupted him. “Isaac? Isaac get down here!”

 

Isaac sighed and got up, not taking his eyes off of the small handheld gaming device clutched tightly between his still slightly pudgy fingers. “Coming!” he shouted, twisting his hands as he pummeled the A button, as if that would help him shoot faster.

 

He ran down the stairs, two at a time, barely looking up to make sure he didn’t trip, before sliding to a stop on his socks at the bottom of the stairwell. “What’s up dad?” he asked, finally pausing his game and smiling up at the bespectacled man above him.

 

“We’ve got new neighbors down the road," he said pulling his pipe out from between his teeth. “And Camden’s out with that Hale boy, so your mom and I wanted you to bring them this."

 

Isaac grinned. “New neighbors? We’ve never gotten new neighbors!”

 

“They just moved into the next house over and we want to make sure they feel welcomed,” said his mom, walking up behind him and leaning down to plant a kiss on his cheek.

 

“Ugh, Mom, stop it, I’m too old for that sissy stuff,” he complained, wiping at his face with his sleeve, but reaching down and pulling on his shoes anyways.

 

“Look at that Miranda, kid’s already on his way to being a strong man, just like his father. Aren’t you son?”

 

“Sure dad,” said Isaac, taking the awkwardly large welcome basket from his dad and wrapping his arms around it. “See you later.”

 

“Andrew, I wish you wouldn’t put so much pressure on him,” said Miranda, wrapping her arm around her husband’s waist as they watched their son start on the long trek down the driveway. “He’s only 8, he has plenty of time to figure out what kind of man he wants to be.”

 

Mr. Lahey snorted but said nothing, putting his pipe back into his mouth, turning around and walking back through the kitchen to the backyard, grabbing his sunhat from its hook next to the door on his way.

 

********

 

If there was anything in Beacon Hills worth worrying about, Miranda would have been worried by how long it was taking her son to get home, but there wasn’t, so after she got dinner in the oven she poured herself another glass of iced tea and sat down on the porch to wait. It wasn’t until the sun was beginning to set far in the distance behind the Greenburg’s orchard that Isaac finally came running back up the driveway, basket gone and holding onto the hand of a chubby dark skinned boy with a wide grin and the deepest dimples Miranda had ever seen.

 

“Hi mom!” said Isaac, grinning. “This is Danny. He’s 8 too! We’re gonna be in third grade together!”

 

“It’s nice to meet you Danny,” said Miranda, smiling and reaching out to shake the boy’s hand.

 

“Can he stay for dinner and then sleep over? His bed isn’t set up yet and mine’s big enough for two and his dad said it was okay!”

 

“Well I think that’d be fine. Dinner will be ready in 10 minutes, it’s good you got home when you did or we might have eaten without you. Now you boys come inside and wash up, I’ll go talk to your father.”

 

Danny and Isaac hurried inside and pulled off their shoes, tripping over each other in the haste to get to the bathroom to wash their hands.

 

“Your mom’s really pretty,” Miranda heard Danny say.

 

“Yeah, I guess,” said Isaac. “She’s also the best cook in the whole world.”

 

Miranda smiled and went outside to find her husband.

 

********

 

Dinner went as well as it possibly could have in the Lahey house. Danny was sweet and funny and seemed to have immediately latched onto Isaac, hanging onto his every word as if he might miss something if he so much as blinked. He also told Mr. Lahey that he liked his hat and Mrs. Lahey that Isaac was right - she really was the best cook ever, all within the first 5 minutes of the meal. That wasn’t where he stopped though.

 

While he made sure to listen to every word everyone else said, as soon as someone stopped talking he was off, talking about anything and everything at about a mile a minute. He talked about his puppy, Lilo, who he had found out was a boy after he named him after the cartoon character, and how now he wouldn’t respond to anything else. He talked about how he was going to have a little brother or sister soon, and how that’s why they moved - so that he and the new baby would have more room to run around. But mostly, he talked about Hawaii, where he’d spent the first 8 and a half years of his life, and it was Isaac’s turn to listen, being so focused at one point that he accidentally put his elbow in his mashed potatoes.

 

Isaac and Miranda were both immediately fond of the boy, smiling and laughing at all the right points in his stories, and growing happier every time he showed off his dimples. Mr. Lahey thankfully didn’t say anything, but it was obvious to his wife that he didn’t like the boy, and she thought she knew why. It wasn’t something she was going to bring up in front of the boys though, so she bit her tongue and listened to Danny talk about surfing.

 

When everyone finally finished eating (Isaac and Danny both going back for seconds and thirds), Danny turned to the Laheys, his easy grin back on his face. “Thanks so much for dinner Mr. and Mrs. Lahey,” he said.

 

“Oh please, call me Miranda.”

 

Danny grinned wider. “Then thanks for dinner Miranda and…?” he trailed off, looking at Isaac’s father.

 

“Mr. Lahey is fine,” he said shortly.

 

“Why don’t you boys go upstairs and play?” suggested Miranda. “Mr. Lahey and I have some things to talk about.”

 

Isaac and Danny got up quickly and pushed in their chairs, and the last thing Miranda heard before they started up the stairs was Isaac saying, “Wow, you should come over every night! This is the first time in 2 years that I haven’t had to do the dishes right after dinner!”

 

When she was sure the boys were out of earshot, she turned to her husband. “Andrew, what’s going on?” she asked. “You’ve never been like this with anyone else that Isaac’s brought over, and I thought Danny was perfectly charming.”

 

“I don’t trust those people Miranda, you know that. A bunch of lazy, good for nothings that I don’t want influencing my son.”

 

“You don’t honestly think that just because he’s Hawaiian he’s going to fit all of those old ridiculous stereotypes, do you?” she asked, trying to keep her voice calm as she piled the dinner dishes into the sink. “For God’s sake Andrew, the boy’s 8 years old!”

 

Andrew sighed and got up, putting his pipe firmly between his teeth and pulling out a pack of matches. “They’re sleeping in separate beds," he grumbled, lighting one on the table leg and holding it to the packed tobacco.

 

“Do you really think that-”

 

“They’re sleeping in separate beds and that’s final!" he snapped, shaking out the match and throwing it into the sink. “If my son has to have a friend like… like that, I’m not having him getting turned into a faggot too.”

 

“Do I need to remind you that the boys are eight years old?!” she exclaimed. “What’s the worst that could happen?”

 

“God dammit Miranda I am your husband and you will do as I say!” he shouted, picking up one of the glasses and throwing it at the wall, where it shattered into a thousand tiny pieces.

 

Upstairs, Danny hear the noise and jumped. “What’s going on?” he asked, looking up from Isaac’s video game collection.

 

“They’re just fighting,” said Isaac, shrugging. “Don’t worry about it, it happens all the time. It should be quiet in a few minutes.”

 

“My parents don’t fight like that.”

 

“Really?" asked Isaac, finally looking up too. “I thought all parents did that.”


	2. The Second Summer - Nine Years Old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danny asks Isaac about love.

"Isaac, do you know what being in love's like?" asked Danny from where he was laying under a pile of hay, trying anything and everything to stay cool on the hot July day. So far this wasn't working, but Isaac had said it might and since Isaac was 5 months and 7 days older than him, that meant that he was smarter, which was why Danny had asked him his question in the first place.

"My dad says love is when you can't imagine living without someone. If you'd rather die than see that person hurt, that means you're in love," said Isaac from his precarious perch on a beam running along the side of the hay loft that was probably put there to stop stupid kids like them from falling off, where he was trying to angle an umbrella just so, to block out a bit of the sun.

"Oh," said Danny, his voice slightly muffled as bits of hay fell into his mouth. "I guess that means I'm in love with you then!"

"No silly, boys fall in love with girls. Boys can't be in love with other boys."

"Why not?" asked Danny, burrowing his head out from the hay, bits of it still stuck in his hair.

"I... I don’t know. But my dad said it so it must be true. My dad's the smartest man in the whole world. Now how's the hay working?"

"It's not," said Danny, rolling over and making hay go everywhere. "I’m just getting hotter."

"Hmm," said Isaac, looking down at him contemplatively. "Just give it some time. It's gotta work eventually."

Danny nodded seriously and buried himself in the hay once more, while Isaac continued adjusting the umbrella.

“Isaac?” came Danny’s voice from under the straw a few minutes later.

“Yeah?” he asked from his spot on the beam, which he seemed to have deemed sufficiently shady.

“Are you just making me lay under this to mess with me?”

“Why Danny boy, I’m glad you asked that,” said Isaac, before pausing dramatically. “Yes. Yes I am.”

Danny grumbled and rolled out from the hay, trying to glare at his friend but feeling his mouth stretch into a grin at the mischievous smile Isaac's face. "I hate you," he said, still smiling.

"No you don't," said Isaac, jumping down onto the planks that made up the loft. Danny said nothing, choosing instead to start picking bits of hay out of his shirt.

"Hey Danny?" asked Isaac, sitting cross legged under the umbrella with just enough room next to him that Danny could sit in the shade too.

"Yeah?" he asked, sitting down and continuing to pull hay out of his shirt.

"We're best friends, right?"

Danny looked up with wide eyes, his pudgy fingers still gripping onto a piece of hay that was stuck through the fabric of his shirt. "Of course," he said, before turning back to the hay.

"So I can tell you a secret.... right?"

Danny's head snapped back up, the hay now forgotten and nodded enthusiastically. Isaac looked both ways, as if to make sure no one was listening in, and then leaned closer to Danny, whose round cheeks were flushed from the heat and mouth was slightly open. "I've decided I'm going to marry Erica Reyes," he whispered in the Hawaiian boy's ear before leaning back to start pulling hay out of Danny's hair.

"Erica Reyes?" he asked. "Th-that's cool."

"She's perfect," said Isaac, glaring at Danny as if daring him to disagree. "Now come on, it's too hot out here," he added, glare disappearing as quickly as it had appeared, pulling one last piece of hay out of Danny's hair, standing up and brushing the dust collected from the afternoon off his shorts. "Let's go play video games."

Danny nodded and took the hand that Isaac offered him, getting to his feet and shaking out his shirt before following the taller boy to the ladder down from the hayloft, thinking about love, marriage, and why the idea of Isaac marrying Erica bothered him so much. 'It must be because I'm afraid he'll stop hanging out with me after he's married,' thought Danny, starting down the ladder after Isaac. 'Boys can't be in love with other boys,' he reminded himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to update today because I'll be busy for the next two nights, and also because I finished the chapter a few days ago and I'm too impatient to wait any longer. I think I'll change the update day to Thursdays as well, since I tend to be less busy on Thursday nights and I dont want to make you guys wait any longer than a week for the next chapter, especially since this one is so short.
> 
> Please comment and tell me what you think - and it'll be getting much angstier next week.


	3. The Third Summer - Ten Years Old

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isaac helps his mom make dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has barely been edited, and all mistakes are my own.

“I can’t believe we’re done with fourth grade already!” shouted Danny, running out to the bike rack in front of the school.

“Already?” scoffed Isaac, walking slower in an attempt to hide his excitement. He was almost eleven years old, and eleven-year-olds didn’t scream and run - they were too mature for that. Danny was only ten and a half, so he had some more time to be a kid. “I thought that day would never end.”

“Yeah, but it did!” shouted Danny. He had been doing a lot of shouting in the last few months. Isaac thought he was hanging out with that weird Stiles kid too much. If Stiles didn’t spend so much time with Scott McCall, Isaac might be worried he was trying to steal his best friend.

“Come on, let’s go home,” said Isaac, pulling bike off the rack, just as Scott and Stiles came out the front door. Completely coincidentally of course. He wasn’t even the slightest bit paranoid.

The two boys spent the ride home chattering about their plans for the summer, which mostly included going swimming in the river, swinging on Isaac’s tire swing, sitting in the hay loft, and generally making a mess of things. They spent so much time talking and stopping to listen to each other and share their ideas that by the time they got to Danny’s house it had been over an hour since school had gotten out and his mother was pacing the porch worriedly. 

Mrs. Mahealani was very different from Isaac’s mom in that regard, because even though the Mahealani’s had been in Beacon Hills for almost 2 years now, she was still uncomfortable with her son being home any later than he had promised. She guessed it probably had something to do with the fact that they had lived in the city with the highest crime rate in Hawaii, paired with the amount of bullying Danny had to go through at his old school, but no matter what the reason was, she wasn’t going to stop worrying about her little boy any time soon.

The two boys finally pulled up on their bikes, Danny laughing while Isaac grinned proudly, running a hand through his already messy curls. 

"Danny, what took you so long?" asked Mrs. Mahealani, running towards her son. If anyone had been watching Isaac as she grew nearer to the two boys, they would have seen him flinch back slightly, before visibly relaxing when she pulled her son into a tight hug. "Do you know how worried I've been?"

"Sorry mom," said Danny, disentangling himself from his mother and looking up at her sheepishly. "We got distracted on the way home."

Mrs. Mahealani sighed but kept her arm around her son and led him inside, gesturing for Isaac to come inside too with her other hand. "Come on, lets get you boys a snack, I'm sure you must be hungry." the two boys nodded enthusiastically and threw themselves down at the table as Mrs. Mahealani cut an apple into slices and spooned out a bowl of peanut butter, setting it in front of them before going to see if Danny's little sister Kailee was up from her nap.

"Hey Danny?" asked Isaac, looking up from the apples to where Danny was attempting to balance a large scoop of peanut butter on a thin slice of apple.

"Yeah?" asked Danny, not looking up from the piece of apple that was now bending under the weight of the peanut butter.

"Remember when I told you I was going to marry Erica?"

Danny finally looked up at Isaac, slightly surprised that he had chosen to bring this up now. "Yeah, of course," he said. How could he forget? Isaac had spent the last year waxing poetic about everything from Erica's eyelashes to the way she walked to lunch by herself every day, head held high. He had considered asking her to sit with them every day (he never did), helped her through two seizures (but disappeared immediately after he was sure she was okay), stopped 6 people from making fun of her (never in front of her), and drafted a grand total of 37 anonymous Valentines to her starting 22 days before Valentine's Day (he never sent any of them).

"Will you be my best man?" asked Isaac, looking at Danny seriously.

"Of course I will," said Danny, nodding, and trying to ignore the strange disappointment in his stomach that he didn't quite understand. "But only if you'll be mine too."

A grin lit up Isaac's face, confirming Danny's suspicion that that was the right thing to say. "Yeah, that'd be awesome! Wait, but, who're you gonna marry?"

"Oh...." said Danny turning back to his peanut butter. "I don’t know. Cora Hale is pretty I guess."

"Cora Hale? My brother's dating her sister! If they got married too then we'd be like proper brothers or something!" said Isaac, almost squirming with excitement. "Cora's kinda mean though..." he added, trailing off as he started considering the possibilities of this exciting new family.

"I don’t think that's how brothers work," said Danny, but Isaac wasn't listening, off in a world of his own.

"Isaac, will you be joining us for dinner tonight?" asked Mrs. Mahealani as she walked back into the room, carrying a squirming Kailee.

"Oh, no thank you Mrs. Mahealani," said Isaac, jerking his head up. "I promised my mom I'd help her make dinner."

"Isaac!" squealed Kailee, and Mrs. Mahealani set down the almost two-year-old so she could run over to him and throw her arms around his legs.

He picked her up and lifted her into his lap as Mrs. Mahealani said, "Isaac, while I'm very impressed you can properly pronounce my last name, I've told you a hundred times to call me Amy."

"Sorry Amy. My dad's real big on manners. And being prompt. Speaking of, what time is it?"

"It's... 5 minutes after 5," said Amy, glancing down at her watch. 

"Oh no, I told my dad I'd be home by 5, he's gonna kill me," said Isaac breathlessly, moving Kailee from his lap to Danny's and jumping to his feet, kissing her on the head quickly when she made grabby hands at him.

"Slow down Isaac, I'm sure your dad will understand if you're a few minutes late, and it's only a two minute bike ride."

"No, no, I have to go home right now," said Isaac, shaking his head emphatically. "Thanks for the snack Mrs. Mahea-Amy. See you tomorrow Danny." He said all this in one breath, ran out the door and was already on his bike and pedaling away before either of them could say anything.

Amy wished it was the first time she suspected something about Isaac’s home life with his dad.

********

Isaac made what was normally a two minute bike ride in just over a minute, but by the time he threw his bike down in the yard and got into the house his dad was standing in the middle of the kitchen with his arms crossed. 

"I'm so so sorry dad," said Isaac, breathing heavily. "I know I said I'd be home by 5 but Danny and I just got distracted on the way home and I didn't even know what time it was until a few minutes ago and then I left right away."

Mr. Lahey just stood there looking down at his now ranting son, a look of disapproval on his face. "Are you making excuses son?"

"N-no sir. Sorry sir," said Isaac, looking down at his toes.

"Good. Now since it's been a few months since you were late I'll let this one slide. Just... clean up the kitchen after dinner, alright? And I want it sparkling, got it?"

"Yes dad, thank you. It won't happen again," said Isaac, a look of relief on his face.

Mr Lahey just snorted and walked out of the room, just as Miranda walked in from the bathroom, looking slightly pale.

"Hey sweetie," she said, ruffling his hair on her way into the kitchen. "You ready to make some chicken parmesan?"

"Yeah," said Isaac, following her. "Are you okay?" he asked as she started coughing.

"Oh I'm fine honey, don't you worry about me," she said, once the coughing died down. "Now let's get started. Can you get the chicken out of the fridge?"

Isaac nodded and hurried to the fridge, and Miranda used his moment of distraction to wash the blood she had coughed up off of her hand, watching the red tinted water swirl down the drain.

********

Dinner was uneventful, as usual. Isaac was glad for Camden and his friend Derek’s presence to distract his father from shooting him angry looks the whole time as he was prone to do when Isaac messed up. He wouldn’t generally punish him apart from a few extra chores here and there, but he would sometimes spend as long as a week looking disapproving - or even worse, ashamed - every time he looked at his younger son. Camden’s presence usually helped keep that to a minimum, but Camden was seventeen now, and by the next summer he’d be moving out and leaving Isaac alone with his parents.

Mr. Lahey spent most of the meal talking to Camden about his plans to join the military for four years after high school just like he had, only shooting Isaac the occasional judgmental look when he didn't speak up and say that's what he wanted to do too. Derek and Isaac spent the meal rolling their eyes at each other when Mr. Lahey's back was turned. Miranda spent the meal in silence, looking pale and barely eating anything.

"This chicken is really good Miranda," said Derek once Camden and Mr. Lahey finished their conversation, opening his mouth for the first time all evening. Isaac didn't really know how Camden and Derek were such good friends, since Derek spoke so little and Camden seemed to never stop talking. Derek was okay though, when he wasn't complaining about Camden dating his older sister. He treated Isaac with the same indifference that he treated everyone with instead of treating him like a little kid like most people did, so Isaac decided he liked him, even if he had made fun of his scarves during the last winter.

"Thank you Derek," said Miranda. "But Isaac actually did most of the work."

Derek looked at Isaac with a look of surprise on his face. "Really?" he asked.

Isaac blushed and nodded, looking down at his plate and pushing his home grown asparagus around with his fork.

Derek cleared his throat and wiped all expression off his face. "You did good, kid," he muttered, as if he was afraid to show affection towards anyone, which, knowing Derek, was entirely possible.

Isaac just continued pushing his food around with his fork, a fluttering in his stomach. He'd never gotten that feeling when his mom complimented him, but maybe it was just because Derek wasn't family, which meant it wasn’t necessary for him to say it.

“Yeah, good job bro, you’ll make a great house wife one day,” teased Camden, reaching over to ruffle Isaac’s hair affectionately. Isaac was about to say something snarky in return when he was interrupted by the shattering of a glass on the ground.

“Oops,” said Mr. Lahey, looking at Isaac innocently, but something in his expression gave the curly haired boy the impression that it wasn’t entirely an accident.

Hours later, Isaac had finally finished cleaning the kitchen, which had seemed to be much messier than usual, and he was just putting the last dish away in the cupboard, when Derek came down the stairs, waving at the younger boy on his way out the door. Isaac closed the cupboard door with a snap and hurried out onto the porch to see Derek sitting down on his motorcycle and picking up the helmet from the back of it.

“Hey Derek?” he asked before he could lose his nerve.

“Yeah, kid?”

“D-Do you think that maybe after Cam leaves, you could still come over for dinner sometimes?”

Derek looked at Isaac for a moment before his face lit up with one of his rare grins. “Sure, Isaac,” he said. “And maybe if you make something really great, I’ll take you for a ride on the bike, how about it?”

Isaac grinned and nodded as Derek put on his helmet, hiding his face. He gave Isaac one last wave, then started up the bike and pulled out of the yard, leaving Isaac smiling and waving on the porch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I decided to post this chapter a day early, partially to make up for how short last week's chapter was, and also because I'm impatient and want to know what you guys think. Please comment and tell me your thoughts on it.


	4. The Fourth Summer - Eleven Years Old - part one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this isn't complete yet, and it's barely been edited at all. I haven't been inspired to work on this sorry at all this week until like 2 hours ago, and I'm so exhausted, I cant make myslef finish it tonight, but I'll finish this chapter some time in the next few days and edit this again tomorrow morning, but I wanted to give you guys something now.

The end of Isaac Lahey’s fifth grade year was nothing like the year before. The afternoon was not spent planning and messing around with Danny on the way home, or hurrying to help his mother make dinner. Instead, he gave Danny a quick hug goodbye, jumped on his bike, and was off to the local hospital before most of the students were even out of the building.

It was only about a 5 minute bike ride, but Isaac was so impatient that it felt like 20. When he finally got there, Mrs. McCall was sitting at the desk like she was every Monday, Wednesday and Friday that Isaac came to visit.

“How’s she doing today, Mrs. McCall?” asked Isaac.

“I’ve got to be honest Isaac, she’s not good,” said Mrs. McCall, looking at him compassionately. That’s what Isaac liked about her. She didn’t pity him or try to sugarcoat things, and she didn’t try to give Isaac any sort of sense of false hope; they both knew that Mrs. Lahey’s condition wasn’t a matter of “if,” but “when.”

The last year had been anything but easy for the Laheys. Mr. Lahey had begun drinking more often and grown more easily angered, lashing out at the smallest things. Isaac and Camden on the other hand, had grown more withdrawn. Camden had turned to working out, becoming obsessed with being the best in his basic training session that he was leaving for at the end of June, while Isaac had turned his focus to his studies, quickly becoming the top of his class. But none of their distractions and methods of coping could possibly make them forget that Miranda had missed Isaac’s student teacher conference because she had a chemo treatment to get to, or that Camden was the only boy in his class whose mom showed up to his graduation in a wheelchair with an oxygen tank, or that Miranda was sick, and she wasn’t getting any better, and it was all because of that damn pipe that now rarely left its spot clenched between Mr. Lahey's teeth.

“Can I go in?” asked Isaac.

“Go ahead honey,” said Mrs. McCall, smiling encouragingly.

Isaac walked down the cold, empty hallway, shivering slightly at a combination of the chill in the air from the too high air conditioner mixed with the smell of antiseptic coming from every room. He tried not to think about what the antiseptic smell was covering up as he finally reached his mom’s room at the end of the hall and poked his head in. “H-hey mom,” he said quietly, glad to find he wasn’t waking her up.

“Hi honey, how was school?” asked Miranda weakly.

‘She seems to be doing everything weakly these days,’ thought Isaac bitterly, but he made himself smile and sit down in his chair next to her bed anyways, barely managing to stop himself from flinching at how skinny and pale she looked. He and Camden each had their own chair next to the bed that they had claimed months before when Miranda was just checked in. Mr. Lahey didn’t have one because he rarely visited, and when he did he tended to stand in the corner silently and uncomfortably and leave quickly.

“School was good,” said Isaac finally. “I actually talked to Erica Reyes today.”

“Really?” she asked, smiling weakly. “What did you say?”

“I told her to have a good summer, and she said ‘you too,’” said Isaac, grinning proudly.

“That’s great sweetie,” she said, before beginning to cough, wincing and placing a hand on her chest as she did so. For a long time, she didn’t stop. Isaac cringed, drawing himself up into the chair, used to these attacks by now but still not really used to them.

“How’s Danny doing?” she finally asked, once the coughing had died down, wiping a bit of blood away from the corner of her mouth and smiling thinly in a way that made it seem like she knew something that Isaac didn’t.

“Danny’s good,” said Isaac, a little confused by this sudden change in topic.

“And your other friend? Cora?” she inquired, referring to the new friend that he and Danny had made that year.

“Cora’s good,” chuckled Isaac. “Just as mean as ever. I think she has a crush on Stiles Stilinski. I don’t know why though.”

“Isaac, be nice,” said Miranda, smiling at her youngest son before the coughing started again. The coughing fits were getting closer together each day, and everyone knew that they only had a few weeks left at the most. Isaac had been getting sympathetic looks and gift baskets from everyone in the town for the last month or two. He hadn’t told either of his parents about them, knowing that his mother would just feel bad for making people sad, and that his father would start shouting about how they weren’t a charity case and probably start threatening one of the people who was trying to help them.

“Mom,” whispered Isaac, his voice breaking. She reached up with a comforting smile and ran a hand over his head, the hair just beginning to grow back from when he had shaved it off to show his support. Her pale blue eyes connected with his darker ones for a few seconds before both mother and son looked away quickly to hide them as they grew shiny with tears. Isaac busied himself with adjusting the brightly colored scarf tied around Miranda’s head that he and Danny had picked out, hiding away what had once been blonde ringlets like his own, and was now just smooth skin and dark blue veins.

“Mom,” he whispered again, hands trembling but voice now quite steady. He took her hand in his and squeezed tightly, the tears finally spilling over onto his cheeks.

“I love you so much baby,” she whispered back, squeezing back as much as her brittle fingers would allow and reaching up with her free hand to wipe away the first of his tears.

“No, mom,” he said, scrubbing the rest of his tears away impatiently with the back of his other hand. “Don’t talk like that. You still have time. Just look at me mom, you still have time, I promise.”

“No, Isaac,” she said, shaking her head and placing her second hand over his, smiling even as she felt her eyelids growing heavy. “It’s too late.”

“Mommy, I’m scared,” he whimpered. Isaac hadn’t called his mother ‘mommy’ since he was four and still sucked his thumb. “Dad hasn’t been the same since you got sick.”

“I know,” she said, still holding onto his hand with everything she had left. “And I wish I could help you, but I can’t. People react to sickness in different ways honey, that’s something you’re going to have to learn. You can let it change you like your father has, or you can grow from it, and learn new things. It’s going to be hard, but everything’s going to be alright in the end. Everything’s going to be fine, you just be my strong little man for me, and whatever you do, don’t you dare forget just how much I love you.”

Isaac nodded, trying to stay strong, trying to stop the tears from continuing to spill down his cheeks. She reached up again and wiped another tear away, smiling sadly. “And I want you to know that being strong doesn’t mean you can’t cry, it just means you won’t let the grief beat you, okay?”

Isaac nodded again, trying to take in what she was saying before it was too late.

“I love you so much Isaac,” she whispered.

“I love you too mommy,” he whispered back, and she smiled, giving his hand a final squeeze before she took one last shuddering breath. The grip on his fingers loosened, and the light disappeared from her eyes.

“Mom?” he asked, as the machine next to him began to let out a long, steady beep. “Mommy?!” he cried, hysterically. “Mommy please!”

The next few hours were a blur to him: clinging onto his mother’s hand as the doctors tried to drag him away, Mrs. McCall finally pulling him away to the waiting room and putting a warm cup of tea in his hands, not leaving his side until his father pulled up in front of the hospital in his old, beaten up red pickup truck. His father picking him up and throwing him into the passenger side, driving home in silence. His father dragging him into the house and screaming at him, saying it was his fault, that she wouldn’t have died if he hadn’t been there stressing her out all the time, that if he’d just given her some time to heal like he had then she might still be okay. A sharp sting across his cheek as his father’s hand lashed out, his knees buckling as he fell to the floor in the living room. His father breaking down, his screaming no longer intelligible as he punched the wall, the door, the furniture, Isaac, anything he could get his hands on.

Eventually Mr. Lahey stopped, sinking down on the couch and burying his head in his hands. When he finally looked up, after what seemed to Isaac like an eternity but was probably no more than five or ten minutes, his face was wet with tears and he looked entirely broken. He beckoned Isaac closer, and Isaac complied, cheek still stinging and lip split, his bare feet making no noise on the brightly colored carpet that his mother had loved so much.

Mr. Lahey pulled him into a tight hug, and Isaac hugged back gingerly, his face dry but covered in tear tracks. Mr. Lahey had never hugged his son like this before, and Isaac hugged him tighter, realizing he'd never seen his father cry either.

"I'm sorry dad," he whimpered into Mr. Lahey's shoulder.

"I know son," he whispered back. "I know."

The two never brought up that afternoon again, and by the next morning, that beautiful, brightly colored carpet was gone.

********

The funeral was two days later,and almost the entire town was there. Even sherriff Stilinski had gotten the day off of work to come and off his condolences, his own wife having died from breast cancer almost 3 years previously. Isaac stood in between Danny and Camden the entire time, saying nothing and refusing to make eye contact with anyone. 

He was uncomfortable in his too small suit, and too warm as the sun kept beating down on them, almost mocking their grief. "What are you doing?" he wanted to scream. "The most amazing woman in the whole world just died and you dont have the common decency to stop shining for on measly day?" But he didn't. He just stood still.

He barely even reacted when Erica hugged him after the ceremony, just stood stiffly in her grip before slowly relaxing, resting his head on her shoulder for a moment but not hugging her back. He didn't notice how Danny stiffened next to him, but Erica did, pulling away and shooting the Hawaiian boy an apologetic look.

Danny just shrugged slightly then turned back to his best friend, who had in turn moved back so he was facing the closed casket sitting in front of the large group of people, all milling about and talking about what a lovely person Miranda was. Danny reached over and adjusted Isaac's tie without even really thinking about it, noting as he did so that that sleeves and pant legs on his suit were both at least an inch too short. Isaac blinked and finally looked away, the spell the casket had been casting on him broken. "Thanks," he whispered, and he and Danny both knew it wasn't just for adjusting his tie.

"No problem," said Danny, reaching down and taking Isaac's hand in his, squeezing it tight. Isaac's eyes filled with tears, and Danny was just about to pull his hand away, thinking he had made a mistake when Isaac squeezed his hand back and leaned his head onto the shorter boy's shoulder.

They stood like that for a few mintues in silence, both boy's hands growing sweaty but neither one wanting to give up their small bit of comfort. Eventually, the silence was broken by none other than Derek Hale, walking up behind Isaac and throwing his perpetually leather clad arm around the blonde boy's shoulders.

"Come on kid, let's get you home."

Isaac nodded numbly and pulled away from Danny. "Will you be okay?" he asked the younger boy.

Danny nodded. "Yeah, go ahead. I'll ride back with my mom."

Isaac followed Derek back to his motorcycle and took the spare helmet that the older boy handed him, slipping it on over his buzz cut. "Are you sure this is okay? What about Camden?" he asked.

"I told Camden to get a ride back with your dad in the truck," said Derek as he pulled on his helmet too. "You just looked like you really needed to get out of there."

"Thanks," said Isaac, so quietly he wasn't even sure if Derek heard him.

He had never imagined his first ride on Derek's motorcycle to be quite like that, on his way home from his mother's funeral, eyes still wet with tears, but he still couldn't deny that it was amazing. He felt like he was flying, like he'd never come down, and - for the first time since the diagnosis came in, he felt truly free.

The ride was over far too quickly of course, and Isaac climbed off the bike in front of his house, a little weak around the knees and all sense of freedom gone, the grief crashing over him again like a tidal wave.

"Thanks for the ride," he mumbled, handing Derek the helmet. The older boy placed both of the helmets on his bike, putting his arm back around Isaac as he walked him into the house. The blonde boy was a bit surprised by this, considering how distant Derek usually acted around him, but Derek had a bit of a secret soft spot for him. After all, Camden had been dating his older sister Laura for years, and best friends with Derek for even longer, so Derek considered the Laheys to be family.

He walked with Isaac until they reached the couch in the living room, getting him to sit down before he headed to the kitchen and began rummaging around in the drawers and cupboards until he found some tea, thinking the hot liquid might do good for Isaac's nerves. By the time the tea was brewed Isaac's shoes had been kicked across the room,his jacket had been removed, and he was in the process of attempting to loosen his tie. Derek handed the younger boy the tea and wordlessly moved to attempt to untangle the mess that was tied around Isaac's neck.

When Derek finally got the tie undone half of Isaac's tea was gone, and he looked significantly more relaxed if not any happier. Derek placed the tie on the couch cushion next to him and pulled Isaac closer, letting the blond rest his head on Derek's shoulder as he slowly sipped his tea.

"I dont know what to do," he finally said, once his tea cup was empty. "I keep thinking I'm going to come downstairs to her making pancakes and telling me that I almost slept through breakfast, or halfway through the day I'll stop whatever I'm doing and think I need to go visit her and then I remember that I cant and I just can't handle it."

Derek said nothing, just pulled him even closer, and Isaac nuzzled into his chest, letting the older boy rest his chin on his head and rub circles on his back as his breathing slowed and he let his eyes flutter closed. Derek's breathing eventually slowed too, and that's how Camden and Mr. Lahey found them almost two hours later once they finally escaped the well-wishers and condolences and stories of happier times, wrapped around each other comfortingly, empty mug still dangling from Isaac’s pale, skinny fingertips.


	5. The Fourth Summer - Eleven Years Old - Part Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH MY GOD I FINALLY FINISHED A CHAPTER ARE YOU PROUD OF ME BECAUSE IM PROUD OF ME FUCK YEAH

Isaac spent most of the four weeks directly after the funeral sitting on the couch with Derek, drinking tea and avoiding Danny whenever he stopped by, though he wasn’t really sure why. Meanwhile, Camden rushed around the house, trying to make sure he had everything together for basic training, even though he didn’t leave for just over a month. Once he was finally sure he was packed, he unpacked everything and started again, deciding he didn’t like the way things were arranged in his duffle bag. Isaac suspected that Camden was just doing this to distract himself, and he didn’t blame him, thinking that if he had a way to distract himself like that he would be doing it too. It was almost peaceful in a sad way, but eventually the younger boy grew tired of the house, especially after Derek declared that he should really go spend more than a day or two at home, considering he’d been spending almost all of his time with the Laheys, only going home to sleep in his own bed occasionally or to change his clothes or eat dinner with his parents.

Isaac didn’t like when Derek went home for dinner, especially when he took Camden with him, leaving just Isaac and his father. Mr. Lahey spoke little on good days, which just made dinner a bit awkward, but on bad days he would spend the entire time picking apart the flaws in Isaac’s character, all while complaining about how the food that he made was overdone and dry.

When Derek said he had to leave and Camden said he’d follow him, winking lecherously at Isaac when he added that he wanted to spend some quality time with Laura before he left, Isaac and Derek both gagged, and for a moment it seemed as if everything was finally going back to normal. Then the two older boys got on Derek’s bike and left, leaving Isaac alone in the cold, empty house, and everything fell back into focus.

He had only been sitting by himself for a minute or two when the silence got to be too much and he got up, setting his mug in the sink and looking out the back window to see his dad driving the riding lawn mower around the back yard. He knew Mr. Lahey wouldn’t hear him if he said anything, and his father had told him very specifically multiple times to never interrupt him while he was working. He figured his dad would realize where he went, changed into his swimming trunks and a tshirt, and walked out the front door, picking up his bike from the side of the yard and beginning the short ride over to Danny’s house. As he rode, leaning side to side as the bike jumped and shook along the bumpy dirt road, he was already missing the freedom he got from riding Derek’s motorcycle and promising himself he’d buy one just as soon as he was old enough and figured out a way to earn the money.

********

Danny didn’t hear from Isaac for almost a month after the funeral. He figured Isaac needed some space for a few days, so he didn’t bother him, but a few days turned into a week and a week turned into two and Danny couldn’t take it any longer. He stopped by Isaac’s house a few times, but he was always informed by Camden or Derek that Isaac was out or asleep, and eventually he gave up, figuring he should just wait for Isaac to come to him. By the time almost a month had passed, he had already resigned himself to a sad, lonely summer, devoid of his best friend. That’s why, 25 days after the funeral, when Isaac showed up on Danny’s doorstep in his swimming trunks, a manic look in his eye, informing Danny that they were going to the river, Danny ran inside and changed into his trunks too, barely pausing long enough to tell his parents where he was going.

After their day at the river, Danny didn't see Isaac again for 6 days. He was starting to think that the previous Wednesday had just been a fluke, or maybe even a dream, but Isaac finally came back, a fresh bruise on his face and a slight limp on his right side. He acted like nothing had happened, but Danny knew there was something seriously wrong with his curly haired friend. When he tried to ask about it however, Isaac just brushed it off, mumbling something about falling off his bike on his way home. Danny may have been wrong, but he was fairly sure that falling off a bike typically didn't cause a black eye.

Things mostly went back to normal after that, except Isaac had started disappearing for a few days at a time, coming back with strange injuries and half formed excuses about how clumsy he was. Danny didn't really believe him, but he didn't want to pry, so he gave his friend the time and space he seemed to need. 

Things got worse after Cam left though, and even though Isaac swore that he was just easily distracted, Danny was just about ready to confront him about it when the older boy finally let something slip.

It was August 16, exactly 2 months after Miranda's death, when Isaac showed up at Danny's after having been missing for nearly a week, a green bruise high on his cheekbone and a picnic basket in his hand. "Come on," he said the moment Danny opened the door, jerking his head towards their bikes. "We're having a picnic."

"I... okay," said Danny. "Just a second."

He told his parents where he was going and grabbed some apples from the kitchen, hurrying back to Isaac as quickly as his short, pudgy legs would let him. The two boys set out into the hot august afternoon side by side, air crackling with electricity around them, dirt hard and dry under their bike wheels.

Danny didn't realize where they were going until Isaac took a sharp turn into the graveyard, riding down the curving cement path until they reached an all too familiar area.

Isaac unpacked the basket silently and Danny sat down next to him, pulling the apples out of his bike basket and putting them next to Isaac's sandwiches. They ate in silence for a few minutes, but it finally got to be too much for Danny, and he broke it uncomfortably.

"I-Isaac?" Danny piped up. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"

Isaac took a deep breath, set down his sandwich slowly, and ran a hand through his hair, which was finally long enough that it wasn't prickly anymore. "Probably not. I just... I need to talk about her, and dad won't let me mention her in the house."

"Okay. Do... Do you want to finish eating first?"

Isaac nodded, and it was as if some sort of barrier had been broken. The two immediately fell into an easy conversation, talking about everything from the lacrosse team they wanted to try out for in middle school to the letter that Isaac had just gotten from Camden. Eventually though, they ran out of food, and they fell back into an awkward silence.

Isaac broke it this time, making Danny jump a little. "When I was sick, she would make me potato leek soup because she knew it was my favorite. And she knitted me a new scarf every winter in whatever color I wanted and she promised me that she would teach me one day so I could make them for my kids but she never got a chance to. And the day she found out she was sick the first thing she did was go get her hair dyed bright pink so that she could have fun with it before she lost it." Isaac was crying at this point, and Danny had heard most of the stories already, but he put his arm around his friend and let him keep going. "A-and she'd calm him down whenever he got into one of his moods and started shouting at us, but now she's gone and Cam's gone and dad says I have to learn to be a man now, and he's going to teach me and make sure that I don't turn out to be a- a faggot."

Isaac took in a deep, shuddering breath and Danny took advantage of his momentary silence to ask, "what's a faggot?"

"I don't know. But dad says that it's the worst thing a boy can grow up to be, and that he-he's gotta knock some sense into me whenever I'm acting too fa-faggoty."

"Kn-knock some sense into you?" stuttered Danny. He wasn't completely sure why he whispered it, but it seemed like the right thing to do.

"It's not like he does it all the time," Isaac assured him, but Danny wasn't sure he believed him. "Just when I really need it. He says that all the dads do it, to make sure their sons grow up right."

Danny didn't know what to do. His dad had definitely never hit him, but maybe it was just because he wasn't as old as Isaac yet. Or maybe dads did things differently in Beacon Hills than they did in Honolulu. He wasn't sure, so he just pulled the older boy closer to him, laying back across the blanket with Isaac's head on his chest, just letting him cry. Isaac tried to stop. He knew that real men didn't cry, but the tears just wouldn't stop flowing, so he gave up and burrowed his face into Danny's chest, breathing in the comforting scent of his best friend.

They woke up hours later in pitch blackness, sticky with sweat, to the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance. There was a crack, a flash of light, and before they knew it, rain was pouring out of the sky in buckets. They were almost instantly drenched, and Danny let out a girlish shriek before he realized what was happening, happy that the cover of night hid the blush rising on his cheeks.

"What time is it?" asked Isaac, frantically scurrying to pick up the blanket and shove it back into the picnic basket.

"I-I don't know? Nine or so maybe?"

"No, no, it can't be that late, I told my dad six, he was expecting me at six, I have to get home right now."

Danny jumped on his bike and followed Isaac as fast as he could, but he was nowhere near in shape enough to catch up with him. Normally Isaac would pedal slow enough that Danny could keep up, but this was a special circumstance, and he just continued to speed up, shouting at Danny that he was sorry, and that he'd see him tomorrow.

By the time Danny passed the Lahey house, Isaac's bike was abandoned in the front yard, the lights were on, and if you listened hard enough you could hear the sound of someone shouting. Danny could feel his eyes fill with tears, a mixture of pity for his best friend for losing his mom and having to deal with this, the stress of the ride home, anger at himself for not figuring out what was going on sooner, worry about his fathers reaction when he got home.

He carefully set up his bike in his yard, and slipped in the back door, dripping wet and shaking.

Danny’s attempt at sneaking in unnoticed was interrupted by his father’s voice. “Danny, where the hell have you been? I’ve been worried sick!”

“I’m sorry!” he said, flinching back against the door, eyes still slightly red. “I was out with Isaac, he wanted to visit his mom’s grave. He was telling me stories about her and we ended up falling asleep. You’re not going to hit me, are you?”

“What?” asked Elikai, drawing back with a horrified look on his face. “Of course not! What would possibly make you think that?”

“Well, Isaac said that his dad told him that since he’s almost a man now, he needs to learn how to take a punch like one when he deserves it. Mr. Lahey said all dads do it to teach their sons how to be men. That’s why boys without dads grow up to be faggots so often, because there was no one to beat them into shape. Then I asked Isaac what a faggot was and he told me he didn’t know but that his dad says it’s something really bad and that it must be because his dad knows everything.”

It took Elikai a few moments to process everything his son was telling him, but when he finally spoke again his voice was softer and calmer.

“Danny, I don’t ever want to hear you say that word again. Faggot is just an awful cruel word that’s used by scared, ignorant men and women for a boy who loves other boys. Now, I don’t know how things work here in Beacon Hills, but where I’m from, a man never hits his son. That doesn’t make more boys like boys, it just means that less of them are too scared to tell people, because they don’t have to worry about being hurt.”

“Boys... who love other boys? But Isaac said-”

“I know what Isaac said, but listen to what I’m saying now. A boy can love another boy, and that doesn’t make him any less of a man, it just means that he’s a different kind of man.”

“Dad?”

“Yes son?”

“I think I love Isaac.”

“Do you think he feels the same way?”

“No,” said Danny, shrugging. “But that’s okay. At least I get to be near him. I’m going to go to bed now. Goodnight Dad.”

“Goodnight Danny,” said Elikai, wondering when it was exactly that his son got so grown up.


	6. The Fifth Summer - Twelve Years Old

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh to be honest I kind of hate this chapter.  
> It's finished now though, so I guess that's what counts or something.  
> Also I know at least one of you was really glad that Derek was in the last chapter, and I promise he will come back, but probably not until the seventh summer.  
> Also if anyone wants to draw something for any part of this fic (but especially the last scene of this chapter or of Isaac and Derek on the couch) I will love you forever.

If Beacon Hills School District was known for anything besides its abysmally high dropout rate, it was their lacrosse team. Even in such a small school, the team had won first place in the state almost every year that Isaac could remember, and had gotten second place every year that they hadn't. Almost every boy on the team - or in the town for that matter - had grown up on a farm, getting strong from spending long hours outside helping their fathers with the ploughing of the fields and planting of the seeds and whatever else needed doing, and that, paired with the unconventional but strangely effective methods of the slightly insane coach were what rocketed their underdog team to superstardom within the high school lacrosse world. Girls as far away as Porterville and Visalia talked about how hot the Beacon Hills lax boys were, so of course, all the boys in the town tried out for the team, this being the closest any of them would probably ever get to real fame.

The middle school lacrosse team may not have been as impressive or well coached as the high school one, but being on it had the same effect for the students. If you got onto the lacrosse team, then you were someone. If you didn't make it, you could kiss your shot at high school popularity goodbye.

It was Danny who convinced Isaac to try out for the team. The two had been planning on trying out for as long as they could remember, but in the past year, it had stopped interesting the older boy. A lot of things had stopped interesting Isaac. Gone was the boisterous, trusting boy of just two years ago, replaced instead with a quiet, cautious, almost teenager who went right home after school, kept his head down in class, and generally tried his hardest not to be noticed. He faded into the background, because that's where he knew no one could tell him he was doing anything wrong. He became the boy that people forgot to include on invitation lists for class birthday parties; the boy that when mentioned around parents would be described as "nice kid," or "keeps to himself;" the boy who got his report card back saying "is a pleasure to have in class," for lack of anything better to say. So when Danny brought up the lacrosse team again, he was hesitant.

"I don't know Danny," said Isaac when the dark haired boy mentioned it while they were playing video games at his house about a week after school got out. "It just kind of sounds like more trouble than it's worth."

"Oh come on," whined Danny, rolling over on his bed as Isaac shot the aliens on the screen in front of him. "It'll be fun! And apparently colleges like sports players, and you're the one who's constantly complaining about how you want to get out of this town."

"Yeah, but..." he sighed, throwing the remote down in front of him as the aliens overtook him. "I just don't know. My dad likes having me around the house after school to help with chores and stuff." He didn't mention that he didn't know if it counted as helping with the chores if he did all of them.

"Practice is only for two hours after school so you'd be home by like 5:30 at the latest," said Danny, sitting up, clearly having prepared all of his arguments ahead of time. "And there's practice for an hour before school which means you'll be more prepared for waking up that early for high school. And," he said, cutting Isaac off before he could respond. "Studies show that team sports improve grades, teamwork, dedication and hardwork on everything, not just the sport that you're playing."

Isaac groaned and threw himself onto the bed next to Danny, wincing slightly as his most recent bruise collided with the firm mattress. "Fine, fine, I'll do it. But I have to check with my dad first."

Isaac's father, as it turned out, was all for the idea of Isaac joining the lacrosse team, so long as it didn't adversely effect his grades, and he even offered to practice with him some time, telling Isaac that he had been the lacrosse captain when he was in high school. Isaac respectfully declined, saying that he thought they'd be okay on their own, but that if they needed any help he'd let his father know. He then left as quickly as he could, claiming that he wanted to tell Danny the good news immediately, but really just wanting to spend as little time in the house as possible.

So they started training. They spent long hours in the sun every day, throwing the ball back and forth, they did push-ups every morning and sit-ups every night, they ate right, and went swimming every afternoon. Danny had been under the impression that he would have shed that last stubborn bit of baby fat by the time he was 12, but he hadn't, so his goal was to drop ten pounds by the end of the summer. 

Isaac tried to motivate him by saying it was a sure fire way to impress Cora Hale, and Danny didn't say that the only one he really wanted to impress was Isaac.

The summer seemed to pass in the blink of an eye, and before they knew it it was late August and tryouts were the very next day. Danny had only lost three pounds, and Isaac's father had insisted he stop making, "this damn rabbit food," for dinner in mid July, but the two boys had high hopes for the tryouts anyways.

Danny stayed at Isaac's house that night for the first time since Miranda was sent to the hospital, and for the first time in even longer, Mr. Lahey welcomed him into the house with open arms and not even a single dirty look. He even offered to drive the boys to the school the next day in his big red pickup truck, so when the afternoon rolled around, Isaac and Danny threw their bikes into the truck bed as soon as they finished lunch, practically buzzing with excitement. It was the first thing Isaac had been this excited for in a long time, his hesitance of the early summer completely gone, ever since he realized that it would be ten hours of every week that he could spend not just without his dad, but with his favorite person in the whole world.

Tryouts were hard and grueling, and all Isaac could think was that he should have done more push-ups to prepare. They finally ended though, and the coach pulled out his list of the people who made the team, squinting in an attempt to read his own handwriting.

Isaac didn't make first line, but that was okay. It's what he expected honestly, first line being mostly for eighth graders and the seventh graders who went through puberty a few years early and were already sprouting facial hair. It's the second line list that he was excited about, heart racing as Coach Finstock begins reading out names.

"Let's see... Okay, Boyd, Cohen, Dae- is that... Daehler? Daehler. Greenberg. Knox. Lahey." Isaac's heart lept. "McCall. Smith. Another Smith. St- wait no, that's... Is that a B? That's not where it should be. Uhh, Bilinski? Is there a Bilinski?" Stiles' hand shot up and he hissed something to McCall, who was standing next to him and chuckling. "Alright, Bilinski. Weird freakin name dude. Okay, that's it. If you didn't make it, tough luck, don't come complaining to me." He turned and walked away before anyone could get in a word in edgewise, and Isaac tried to chase after him, but it was too late. Coach Finstock was gone.

Instead, he walked over to his best friend, who was obviously crushed but trying his best not to show it. "How dare he!" he shouted as they walked back towards their bikes, more animated than Danny had seen him in months.

"It's okay," said Danny quietly, but Isaac could tell it wasn't. "I'll just train harder and try out again next year. It's not a big deal."

"Not a big deal?" shouted Isaac. "McCall made the team! McCall! He can't even run 50 yards without needing his inhaler!"

"Isaac, it's fine. Don't worry about it."

"No, you know what? If you're not on the team, then neither am I."

"Isaac..." said Danny, sighing. "Stop. Don't quit just for me. I want you to have fun. Just because I didn't make it doesn't mean you should have to suffer for it."

"But- But-" stuttered Isaac, clearly still very upset.

"No. Come on, let's just go to the orchard."

"Fine," grumbled Isaac, and they got on their bikes and headed off towards the Greenberg's apple orchard.

Isaac had discovered a hole in the Greenberg's chain link fence in October while avoiding his father, and since then it had become the boys' escape, riding their bikes there and hiding out, sometimes for hours at a time.

Isaac had gone there when he failed his first math test and didn't want to tell his dad. Danny had gone there when his sister was crying and wouldn't stop. They had gone together when Cora had broken her leg in early May and they hadn't been allowed to go and see her in the hospital because they weren't technically family.

No one else knew about it, except for the teddy bear that Isaac had gotten from his mom when he was a baby. Danny was the only one who knew about the teddy bear though, so Isaac figured it was okay.

Once they reached it, the two layed on the ground stared up at the clear blue sky above them, surrounded by nothing but apple trees and the sound of their own breathing.

"We should start our own sport," said Isaac finally, as he carded his fingers through the soft, bright green grass. "One that's better than lacrosse."

"Nothing's better than lacrosse," grumbled Danny, laying on his stomach and pulling up blades of grass in search of interesting bugs.

"This one will be," said Isaac, rolling over and pushing himself up onto his elbows so he could look Dany straight in the eyes. "It'll be the best sport ever invented. And we'll earn millions of dollars and then well come back and wave all our money in Finstock's stupid face."

Danny smiled - just a little, barely more than just a tiny quirking of the corners of his mouth, but Isaac's heart lept, and he broke into a grin. It had been a pretty great summer, he thought, even if Danny hadn't made the team and he missed Camden something awful. He was stronger, faster, happier, and his father hadn't had to punish him in almost two months.

"Come on," said Isaac, jumping to his feet. "We can use an apple for the ball."

Their sport didn't really turn out to be anything more than a game of catch where they occasionally threw away the "ball" and tackled each other, but they enjoyed it all the same, playing and talking until well the sun began to set in the west, only stopping long enough to eat a quick dinner of pilfered apples. Isaac and Danny had both told their parents that they were staying the night at the other boy's house, so both of them were free to just have fun and spend their day being 12 year old boys for as long as they wanted.

Eventually, just as the sun was beginning to go down in the west, Isaac tackled Danny one last time, pinning the boy to the soft grass below them. They stared at each other for a moment, checks flushed and breathing hard, everything but each other forgotten, before, without warning, Danny lifted his head up and kissed Isaac on the nose.

It was hardly a kiss at all, more of a brushing of lips on skin, only a fraction of a second long, but Isaac jerked his head back, eyes wide with shock.

"What was that?" he asked, sitting up so his knees were on either side of Danny's legs.

"Uh, a kiss?" said Danny, as if he wasn't quite sure, pushing himself up onto his elbows.

"But why?" asked Isaac, scrambling off of Danny but not making any sort of move to leave, a look of pure confusion on his face.

"I- I don't know," said Danny. "I just wanted to."

"Oh," said Isaac, and Danny was worried for a moment before he asked, "does that's mean I can kiss you too?"

"I, uh, yeah, if you want to," said Danny, and Isaac leaned forward onto his hands and knees, crawling back over to his friend.

This time there was no hesitation as Isaac leaning in and pecked Danny on the lips, quick and chaste, pulling away with a thoughtful look on his face.

"Huh," he said, running his fingers over his lips.

"Wh-what?" asked Danny, worried again. "Was it... Bad?"

"I don't know," said Isaac, looking thoughtful. "I've never kissed anyone before, so I don't have anything to compare it to. I don't think so though."

"Me neither," said Danny.

"You've never kissed anyone either, or you didnt think it was bad?"

"Both?"

Isaac chuckled and layed back down, staring up at the bright blue sky through the crisscrossing branches above them. Danny layed down next to him and stretched out his arm, taking Isaac's hand gently within his own. Isaacs stiffened for a moment, so quickly that Danny wasn't quite sure if it had even happened, but before he had time to pull his hand back, Isaac relaxed, entwining his long, skinny fingers with Danny's short, pudgy ones and closing his eyes.

This time, when Isaac woke up to find the orchard had darkened around them, he didn't jump to his feet, didn't panic. He just pulled Danny closer and went back to sleep, a small smile on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on my tumblr [here](http://louisoldpal.tumblr.com)


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